Yogurt and Avocado

My dear DIL Emma called this morning (what a great way to start the day!). We talked and the subject of avocado and yogurt came up. I quickly refer the Super Baby Food Book to Emma (you can get an used one for only $5.04, a great price for all of the wonderful info you could get out of the book). I like having that book in my library shelf. I started Peter on solid when he was about 6 months old. Avocado and yogurt have always been on his menu besides banana. The interesting thing is , I did not like yogurt even though I knew that it is good for me. But now, understanding more about this curdled jewel, it has become one of our family's staples.

Here's what Ruth Yaron said about yogurt:
"Yogurt is a good first food for babies who are at least 6 months old. Yogurt is a super Baby Food which contains beneficial bacteria that promote intestinal health. It is similar tasting to milk, which is a benefit to a beginning eater who is familiar only with breast milk or formula. Whole milk yogurt, instead of low-fat yogurt, is recommended because your baby needs fat. Baby yogurt should be of the plain variety. Don't buy the yogurt with sugary fruit added or, worse yet, the yogurt that contains artificial sweetener (Nutrasweet, saccharin).... Although yogurt made from cow's milk may be given to a baby younger than one year old, cow's milk should not be fed to babies in place of breast milk or formula before age one year (page 60). Note: If allergies to milk run in your family, you shouldn't feed your baby yogurt made from cow's milk. Babies with milk allergy can have yogurt made from other milk..."

I like giving Peter plain goat milk yogurt with mashed banana for breakfast, that is, after feeding him the mashed avocado or egg yoke with soft brown rice, first. Follow by a 4 oz. bottle of goat milk to "wash down" the food. Very soon, I will be giving him pureed strawberries or blueberries or maple syrup, etc...
One thing I don't do, though, is stir together the yogurt and fruit. It makes the yogurt too runny. When we first began solid food, I would scoop a tiny bit of the plain yogurt and a big portion of mashed banana together in one baby spoon and fed it to him. Now Peter is loving a big scoop of yogurt with some banana. It is a wonderful thing to watch your baby liking "plain" yogurt with real fruit.

Avocado, although I haven't let Peter drink our famous avocado shake just yet, I do, however, feed him avocado almost daily.

Here's what Ruth Yaron said about avocado:
Mashed ripe avocado is also an excellent first food for baby. They are so nutritious that some claim humans can live on them exclusively. Avocados are also an excellent source of the unsaturated fatty acids that your baby needs for brain development. See page 426 for more information on avocados.

I highly recommend this book.